Apply for a KGP Garden

Applications for 2017 gardens will be available in December or January 2017. Please check back then to download an application.

KGP applications are accepted throughout January each year and applicants for household gardens are contacted by mid February. If you missed your chance to apply for a garden this year, please check back toward the end of this calendar year to apply for the following spring.

If you live in Thurston County but don’t qualify for a free KGP garden, consider partnering with GRuB by purchasing a sliding-scale Food Investment Garden (F.I.G.)! It’s a double-win: invest in your health & enjoyment by growing your own food AND invest in GRuB’s mission.

If you represent a school, non-profit, or tribe and you’re interested in partnering with GRuB to build gardens at your facility, please contact jackson@goodgrub.org to discuss your vision and possibilities for collaboration.

How Does The Kitchen Garden Project Work?

Each spring, GRuB’s Kitchen Garden Project (KGP) partners with individuals, families, and organizations to build backyard vegetable gardens. We work throughout Thurston County to provide the public with access to the knowledge and resources needed to grow fresh, healthy, and culturally appropriate foods. The KGP offers gardens, vegetable seeds, plant starts, cover crop mix, and our extensive gardening workshop series, and encourages connections within the greater gardening community.

What Kind Of Garden Am I Eligible For?

To qualify for a free KGP garden, applicants must have an income at or below 185% of the federal poverty guidelines at the time of application. To determine household eligibility, please see the chart on the 2016 Garden Application or email kgp@goodgrub.org

Applications will be reviewed to ensure eligibility and garden recipients will be selected through a lottery process. Selected applicants will be contacted by February 10th and invited to one of our required orientation meetings to learn more about partnering with the KGP. Orientations are scheduled to begin in late February, and gardens are built from late March until May.

Double Dug Or Raised Bed – What’s The Best Option?

A raised bed garden is constructed from 2″ by 6″ untreated fir. Three 4′ by 8′ frames are filled with a nutrient-rich garden soil and compost mix. A trellis capable of supporting peas or beans is attached to one of the beds. Raised beds are excellent choices for people with mobility issues. The 4′ by 8′ frames can be stacked to raise the bed to a height that can be managed by those with limited mobility. Raised beds typically last 6 to 8 seasons in the Northwest.

A double dug garden allows a gardener to create a space that best fits their yard. By digging a beds into the existing landscape, we create a garden that is the size and shape you want. Double digging aerates the deeper layers of your garden’s soil. This allows your plants to grow bigger and more vigorously because they have room for their roots! It also improves drainage greatly, which is very important for healthy plants. Each double dug garden is about 100 square feet.